NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT: EAST SIDE

By BRUCE LAMBERT

Published: May 22, 1994

Another protest is brewing at the United Nations -- but this one is aimed at all the other protests that disrupt the 4,000 residents of the Tudor City apartment complex, which stretches from 41st to 43d Streets, between First and Second Avenues.

"The demonstrations are like rock concerts in our living rooms," said Harry Laughlin, president of the residents' Tudor City Association. "With world events, they've become much more frequent, and louder. The summer gets especially raucous, sometimes four or five nights of noise a week. It's not just people voicing opinions but using loudspeakers and amplified megaphones reaching more than 112 decibels."

Carol Piper, manager of Community Board 6, said, "I don't think the Founding Fathers were aware of the sound volume that electronic equipment produces when they wrote the First Amendment."

Residents recognize the right to protest but want the city to restrict locations, hours and decibels. "We're realistic," Mr. Laughlin said. "We live next to the U.N. and expect demonstrations. They have a constitutional right to be heard. We're not trying to take that away, just trying to find a way that won't constantly disturb people who live here."

Norman Siegel, director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said government can set reasonable rules on the time, place and manner of demonstrations. "The Tudor City people have a valid point," he said.

Missing their intended audience, many demonstrations are on nights or weekends, when U.N. offices are empty. Citing security, the police ban rallies from the U.N. sidewalk (Mr. Siegel calls it "the no First Amendment zone"), moving them to Ralph Bunche Park, Hammarskjold Plaza and 42d Street.

To be heard at the U.N., these protesters turn up the volume. Many neighbors are sympathetic to the causes, Mr. Laughlin said, "but we can't help them." B.L.

Photo: Haitian-Americans, like thousands of others, demonstrate near the U.N. (Associated Press)